Cheltenham kid whose threats sparked school closures found dead

Cheltenham kid whose threats sparked school closures found dead
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A student whose disappearance with a gun caused the precautionary closing of a Maryland college on Monday was found dead in Pennsylvania on Saturday, state police said.

Jacob Marberger, 19, was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound at a picnic area of the Hawk Mountain Sanctuary near Hamburg in eastern Pennsylvania, according to a statement by Pennsylvania State Police.

Marberger was a sophomore at Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland. The college has canceled classes since Monday on the advice of law enforcement after Marberger’s parents said he went home to Pennsylvania and retrieved a firearm.

The parents were unable to reach him and did not know where he was going, so they notified the college, the college said on Twitter at the time.

The college posted a statement on its website on Saturday mourning the loss of Marberger.

“This is a terrible blow to our community, and the outpouring of compassion and support we have shown each other will help us through this difficult time,” the statement said. “We need to continue to be supportive of each other as we mourn individually and as a community.”

The college has about 1,450 undergraduate students and is about 80 miles southeast of Philadelphia.